Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - DONE DEAL: Indianapolis Colts Lock Up Daniel Jones with Two-Year Contract

Starting point is 00:00:01 The Indianapolis Colts have signed quarterback Daniel Jones to a two-year contract up to $100 million. Let's get to it. You are Locked-on Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome to Locked-on Colts, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, now the number one sports podcast network around. Hello, everyone. My name is Zach Hickcher, resident film nerd of horseshoe huddle.com. I'm joined as always by Jake Arthur, your favorite half here on the Locked On Colts podcast and your boots on the ground at Roundtable Sports.

Starting point is 00:00:44 We hear breaking down the biggest news of the day, biggest news of the offseason for the Colts, and that is the two-year extension for quarterback Daniel Jones. So in today's mini episode, that's what we're going to dive into, just our quick response to kind of how this all went down and the Colts ultimately getting it done. And then kind of looking at the future with Daniel Jones, at least for the next two years, being the Indianapolis Colts quarterback. But Jake, immediate takeaway that I had here, and I'm curious if you had the same takeaway,

Starting point is 00:01:13 the Colts getting it to a two-year contract is very big, I think. Because I think a lot of us here were thinking, hey, this is a must-win season for Chris Ballard. He needs to get this team into the playoffs or he's going to be fired. So why does he care if he gives out like a four-year contract to Jones, right? Because if Jones works out, then you have him for four years and you're good. if he doesn't work out, you don't have to worry about it. You're not under contract anymore.

Starting point is 00:01:39 But still working that down to two years to give the Colts future an out if Jones doesn't look the same after the Achilles injury or, you know, he regresses back to Giants Jones. The Colts did protect themselves a lot, I think, by getting this down to two years. Now, they might not be able to free up as much cap space as they maybe potentially could have on a four or five year deal, but I still think they're going to be able to clear some cap space with this with a big signing bonus. and they give themselves some of that protection for the future. So again, the numbers look lofty.

Starting point is 00:02:11 The two years up to $100 million, the agent tweet essentially through all the insiders, but ultimately I think the term on that, just the two years, like the length on that, is very big for the Colts and the Colts future. Yeah, I think, you know, the base of essentially $44 million per year is probably a little more than we would have initially thought. It's closer to that franchise tag number. but it's I mean it's doable and again the two years is the big part for me especially with how much is guaranteed 88 million base with 60 plus guaranteed like I like that flexibility that it offers you

Starting point is 00:02:47 and shoot that's probably a good thing for for everybody if the deal does get up to 100 million dollars because it means Jones is hitting the benchmarks and he's probably staying healthy and the Colts are successful. He's shoot, making the Pro Bowl. We'll see what all those fine details are. But I don't mind this. Again, it's, it costs to play when you want your quarterback and the Colts were all in on Daniel Jones. That is always going to be expensive. But I mean, here we are. The offseason can get rolling out. You have your top guy in Alec Pierce. You have his quarterback and Daniel Jones. You can move on. You know, the two biggest checkboxes have now been checked for the Colts. It costs them a zillion dollars to do.

Starting point is 00:03:37 But I do think they have gained a little flexibility here. And again, really like the short-term deal, the two years. I think that is friendly for both Jones and the Colts, to be quite honest with you. I think that's very mutually beneficial. If you're Jones, you'll still be young enough at the age by the end of the two years to cash in on an enormous deal if you stay healthy. And the Colts, I mean, it's two years. Like you can get out of it.

Starting point is 00:04:03 I'm sure there's some wiggle room to get out of it if Jones bombs. Like you mentioned, and regresses to Giants Jones. So this seems like a pretty mutually beneficial deal. Yeah, no for sure. And we'll kind of, I guess, use this first segment to more so talk about the money aspect of it. And the second segment can be more so about just what this means for the Colts. But just kind of keeping with the money as of right now, again, I fully expect this to lower the Colts cap hit in year one. It won't be $60 million in year one, whether that is with void years, whether that's

Starting point is 00:04:34 with the signing bonus being spread out across the two years or again, across void years. They won't be paying $60 million. Like it'll lower the $37 million cap tit for this season. And one thing I really do want to also, I guess, give some credit to Carly Ursaid Gordon here, is she opened the checkbook up this offseason. And you kind of mentioned this earlier in the offseason Jake that she was willing to spend. I mean, just in signing bonuses alone between these two deals, it's what, $44 million at signing for Jones. And with Pierce, it was $60 million at signing, right?

Starting point is 00:05:07 So that's $104 million at signing. That's due in escrow right when you sign these players. So she is opening up that checkbook. I know Jim Ursay was a little hesitant sometimes with stuff like that. And we'll see if they're willing to use maybe some more void years as well to potentially free up even more cap space to be more competitive. So Carla R. Say Gordon is really in on giving this thing one last shot.

Starting point is 00:05:32 We'll see how it ends up. But again, I think getting it to the two-year term, even if you add void years, like, yes, those will hurt you a little bit in the future. But overall, it's not going to be like a Tua situation, right? Where you're going to have a year with like $100 million in dead cap. That's not going to happen with this deal. So I think that they did well to still invest in their quarterback.

Starting point is 00:05:53 they believe in, but also give themselves an out if it doesn't work out. So when you're a team that doesn't have a first round pick next season, I think that this is probably the right way to play it. So I think that they're going to be in a decent place, regardless of which way this goes, if they go, if Jones hits or he doesn't hit, I think that they're going to be in a better place with it. Or they're going to be in a fine place, I guess, after the season. So coming up, we're going to talk about, though, like what this means for the team next year

Starting point is 00:06:20 or maybe even the year afterwards, like can we really trust, Daniel Jones? What's our immediate take to the player that is Daniel Jones coming back to the Indianapolis Colts? Welcome to the five-hour energy flavor draft with 18 different flavors to choose from, including new options like confetti craze, fruity rainbow or cotton candy. There is something for everyone. The board's set, the flavors are ready, and I've got my number one pick on deck for the five-hour energy flavor draft. We're going with fruity rainbow, everybody. It is a game changer. It's got a bright blend of a assorted fruit candy flavors, a sweet layered fruit note in every sip, multi-fruit taste profile

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Starting point is 00:08:54 60 plus million guaranteed. And I mean, this part of it's over now, Zach. So what does this mean going forward? Because when I look at this, obviously Carly-Ey-Gordon is not messing around here. The money is flowing. Now, with real money on the line right now, again, Alec Pierce and Daniel Jones got enormous signing bonuses up front. It feels like there's different stakes now for Chris Ballard and Shane Stuyken. They're playing with real money now.

Starting point is 00:09:26 It's not just money that's being pushed down the line and allocated over three, four, five years. Like, they are playing with real people's money now. You know what I mean? So they better went. To me, right away, that means you signed off on this being your quarterback. We dealt all the money in the world to this guy and Alec Pierce because of everyone's belief internally in these guys helping turn things around. It matters a lot now.

Starting point is 00:09:52 Yeah, I mean, the sense of urgency has never been higher, right? Is what she was saying. But I just kind of want to talk a little bit about, and we have a whole offseason to talk about this as well. But again, as someone who was so anti-Daniel Jones last offseason, right, when it came to signing him, I think the pendulum has swung way too far both ways throughout all of his time with Indy, where early last year, everybody was buying into him being like the answer and all that. And maybe he wasn't necessarily there when he needed to.

Starting point is 00:10:22 to see more of it, more of his play, and just more consistency from game to game. But I think the pendulum has swung so far the other way since he got hurt with Colts fans, where so many of them are going back to saying he was Giants, Daniel Jones, or it was a mirage or all these bad things. Like, you really can't find any advanced stat that says that he wasn't a top five, top six quarterback when he played last season, even with the last two games being, or not last two games, the two games, but prior to the by week being, his worst games. He actually came back well in those last two games he played. He was by far and away,

Starting point is 00:10:58 like EPA per play, success rate, like everything. He was one of the better quarterbacks in football. Now, again, do I think that is exactly what he is? Probably not. But, you know, that's still the best quarterback the Colts have had since Andrew Luck. You know, like that's what he has, that's what he was last season for them. And it's not like they played against a bunch of dud defenses. He played against four top 10 defenses in his in his games last year. So he played some good football for the Colts and I understand the Colts banking on that. Now, and I'm also glad they gave themselves an out if it doesn't work out. But I completely understand why they're banking on it.

Starting point is 00:11:31 He played some really good football last year. And I think when you're looking at just the projection of this offense, yes, they still need to get like another receiver in here, but they haven't really lost anybody, you know, when it got like Michael Pittman Jr. was more of a clog than anything else I think at this point in the offense. He was fine last year, but it's just when it came to what he brought to your offense, he was probably like your fourth best target in that offense, right? So now I think just expanding across getting Alec Pierce more targets, especially in that underneath aspect of the game on top of what he was doing down the field and treating him like a true number one.

Starting point is 00:12:14 I think this is a better thing, like a better avenue for the Colts going forward. So again, I'm not fully bought in on everything that's going on with the Colts. I'm still nervous about the Achilles. And again, like Jones, there's certain reason to think he could regress back to what he was for sure. But I think when it came down to what all they could have done this offseason, I think this is a perfectly fine route. And, you know, like, it's a perfectly fine route. And they give themselves the out if it doesn't work out.

Starting point is 00:12:44 So navigating a situation where you don't have a Josh Allen or don't have a Pat Mahomes, I think this is perfectly fine as you're going to get. If it doesn't work out, you can blow it all up and start over again. Yeah, I think this was the necessary thing they had to do. I mean, it's the thing they were selling all of us on, you know. They said Daniel Jones is our quarterback, hopefully for the short and long term. And we discussed the other day, kind of the disaster scenario of like, what if you lose out on Daniel Jones and or Alec Pierce?

Starting point is 00:13:12 it's like what was the plan all along this at least shows them trying to stick to their plan if it blows up it blows up but it's at least what they were intending to do you know what i mean it was going to be such a a cluster you know what if they were going to mess something up with this quarterback situation so yeah i mean now what they need to do which is something i think they've struggled with before is to get real about what daniel jones situation is he is going to have limitations in his mobility. You can't just act like he's going to be perfectly fine when he comes back. That's not how bodies work coming off of an Achilles injury, of course. So you may have to make some tweaks in this offense, but you also now have the opportunity

Starting point is 00:13:59 with Michael Pittman, Jr. gone to reanalyze and kind of surround him with the type of weapons that he has best utilized throughout his career in New York and last year with the Colts. So whatever that looks like, whether that's, you know, like more West Coast yards after catch type of receivers, if you want to get a running back that catches 50 balls a year, like alongside John. Like whatever it is, go out and get that done because you can't totally rely on his mobility and things like that anymore. Because remember, when they were really humming, tons of rollouts, bootlegs, quarterback sneaks. like they were they had a lot going on with Jones being on the move, which they can still do some of it. He's not just probably not going to have the burst and acceleration and range that he did last year.

Starting point is 00:14:49 So I'm good with this happening because it was their plan. And again, like I said, if it blows up, it blows up. It's at least what they were going for. I just want them to be real about their expectations with him going into this year and plan accordingly. and surround him with as much support as possible. Yeah, we'll see. I will say there have been some people speculating. I've seen speculation all over the place about when Jones is going to play next year.

Starting point is 00:15:17 Personally, I've always been operating that he'll be cleared by week one next year. Now, what is going to be his, what he looks like, what is he going to look like in that week one is the big question, right? That's kind of what you were alluding to there, Jake. Does he look like himself? Probably not. But I do expect him to take the field in week one next year. I don't think it's going to be a situation where he's not going to be ready until December. Like I've seen some people say, like, that's not what's going to happen.

Starting point is 00:15:43 Achilles tears. The recovery timeline is about eight months or so. Now, again, like, we don't have a ton of data on quarterbacks off Achilles. So I can't really project what he's going to look like off of it. But that is what we know about Achilles as of right now. But I expected to be out there week one. The real question is how he's going to look and how he responds. But again, like, in a.

Starting point is 00:16:05 tough quarterback market. You saw what he could do early last season against some pretty good defenses, like good and bad defenses, but it's not like it was all bad defenses. I thought he played some fine football. I understand the investment. And again, the key is just being able to get off of it if it doesn't work. I think that's the best way you could have navigated this whole situation, this offseason, with very limited options. And ultimately, it'll be what comes down to Chris Ballard and Shane Steichen's job security, right? So if it works, they look like geniuses. they're able to keep their jobs. If it doesn't work, then the Colts can get out of all this without much harm and move on with the future. So overall, again, I think that they navigated this fairly

Starting point is 00:16:46 well in the end. And we'll see what it means for the Colts going forward. But that's all we have for today's mini episode. Don't worry, though. We'll have our full episode later around 4 o'clock, 3.34 o'clock to make sure you guys are checking out for that. We still want to wait on more contract details. And if the Colts are going to sign anybody, because now they have a lot more cap space. following this and the Berenhard Riemann restructure from earlier today. So we'll see if the Colts make any more moves. But thank you guys for tuning into this bonus episode of Lockdown Colts, breaking down the Daniel Jones contract extension.

Starting point is 00:17:19 And make sure you subscribe to our show to get all the latest episodes and bonus content. And if you don't already, make sure you're following out Lockdown Colts at Lockdown Colts at at Jack Hicks to all on socials. And if you never miss an episode, then remember the Everydayer Club is built for you. Get Lockdown Colts audio ad free plus members only Discord access and more head to lockdowncults.com to join the club or follow the link in our show notes right now. Thank you all. We'll see you guys back here later this afternoon.

Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - DONE DEAL: Indianapolis Colts Lock Up Daniel Jones with Two-Year Contract

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